By Gabriela Baron
Filipino students returned to face-to-face classes on Monday, Aug. 22, two years after the COVID-19 pandemic forced schools to close.
Based on data from the Department of Education (DepEd), over 28 million students, both from private and public schools, have enrolled for this academic year.
Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte said they can no longer afford to “keep children out of schools.”
“There are no excuses. Hindi na po natin kaya na muling maantala pa ang pag-aaral ng mga kabataang Pilipino. Kailangan na po natin silang maibalik sa in-person learning dahil sa in-person learning makakakuha ng makahulugan, sapat o wasto, at dekalidad na edukasyon,” Duterte continued.
“Today, we acknowledge that this is a victory for basic education. But without a doubt, this is also a victory for all the teachers, support staff, parents, [local government units], other government partners, private sector, and civil society advocates, supporters, and all education stakeholders.”
The implementation of full in-person classes is slated to start in November.
–ag
